December 22, 2018 - 3:42pm
King Arthur classic starter questions
I bough the KA classic starter and it is now on its 2nd day.
Since it was a 1 oz starter, could I assume it was 0.5 oz flour and 0.5 oz water? Would that make it 50% hydration?
I have just read posts here that said it is not a good idea to use the discard of a starter. Does that mean when you are trying to create your own starter?
Can I use the discard from KA's starter since it is a liquid starter?
I hope so because I made English muffins, both baked and griddled, along with banana bread. I also deep fried 2 of the English muffins and rolled them in cinnamon and Splenda. Nice chewy donut.
Please tell me I haven't poisoned myself.....?
Share
Equal amounts of flour and water by weight makes it 100% hydration.
You only say it's a 1 oz starter. Does the packet/package with with more specs or instructions?
When you get a starter you need to carry on the process of feeding it to bring it back to good health before using. This will involve some discard. Once it is very active you can use it to make bread.
In the first few days of making a starter from scratch then it's not a good idea to use the discard. Only when it is more mature is it advised. However when buying a starter from a place like KA it is a well established starter and just needs some TLC before using as it wouldn't have been fed in a while. Using discard at this stage is fine.
Rest be assured though that even if you have used it in baking too early it is baked to temperatures that kills off all bugs. So don't worry about anything either way.
The KA starter only stated the amount of total product in the container, but it was more liquid than solid.
The directions that were in the booklet said the sour dough starter would be ready to use when the starter doubled within 6-8 hours. I fed it at room temperature twice a day for several days. (about 68-70°F during the day, but maybe 60° -62° F after midnight.
I thought a purchased starter would be best for now. I never missed any of the twice daily feedings. By the time I began saving some of the discard to be refrigerated, it was growing really well. No bad smells, no off colors, no floating liquids, very thick when time for another feeding, lots of small bubbles, and more than doubled every time. I kept it at 2 oz room temp starter, 2 oz room temp flour, 2 oz room temp water. Then I read on KA website that the starter could be used earlier than I had thought since it came from KA and was not created by me.
I actually fed the starter for more than 2 days before using the discard. It seemed like 2 days, but I just forgot the day I started the starter which was the day I received it. Good thing I kept notes.
So, if I understand correctly, the percentage is based on the flour. A very liquid 1 oz starter (from KA) would be 50% water and 50% flour, but be considered 100% hydration because the amount of flour is what defines it as 100%????
Or could the starter contain mostly water, but still be called 100% hydration?
Thanks,
100% Hydration is the same amount of flour and water - you are correct.
Thank you.